May 7th - Rinlo to As Catedrais and Devesa

We planned our start to see the arches at the beach of As Catedrais, although sadly some were destroyed in the major storms of recent years. The tide times meant that low tide was at lunchtime (13.00) and we wanted to reach As Catedrais by then. Walking round the headland would have added several kms and as we did not want to walk the fairly busy road we took a taxi to Rinlo to start our walk from there.

The little port of Rinlo is just west of Ribadeo and made a good starting point. The first part was well signed with a yellow arrow and the red marker posts and signing too. It is 8kms to As Catedrais along the cliff tops, past the old shell-fish farm built in 1904. It had a dam, creating tanks, built to protect the lobsters and other shell-fish in a contained area making them easy to harvest. Now derelict it is a historic monument.

A lovely walk and we reached As Catedrais with time for a drink before going down the steps in the cliff side to the beach, going along as far as possible without taking our boots off before climbing back up the steps, then had lunch at the cafe. We backtracked a short way along the road and under the FEVE to go to O Lar de Carmiña at Devesa for the night - a total of 10.8kms for the day.

The journey - 2nd to 6th May 2015

We left home on May 2nd for Plymouth and the ferry to Santander which sailed on the 3rd. We met 6 other pilgrims on the ferry, 2 going to Burgos and 4 heading for Barreda to start their walking. The ferry arrived on time on Monday 4th and we had the rest of the day in Santander before travelling on to Oviedo on the 5th and Ribadeo on the 6th May.

In Oviedo we stayed in a pension near the station but ate in the Cafe Cristina, as in previous years. The Cathedral now charges an entry fee at the West door so it is no loger possible to visit the Cámara Santa or the church itself without paying. This was very disappointing but we did get our credenciales stamped. (Since coming home we have seen that the cathedral website says that free entry is allowed for prayer and we feel that the girl on the desk was therefore not aware of allowing pilgrims at least into the main church. She was quite clear that we had to pay because we questioned it!).

The FEVE from Oviedo to Ribadeo has a 15 minute change to its time, leaving earlier than before at 7.30am. - no timetables available so we relied on our old one for the list of stations. The changes do mean that the train now runs to time! In Ribadeo our hotel was in the main square. We walked down to the albergue in the afternoon to drop off our English paperbacks but saw no other pilgrims. The old house in the square has been at least partly restored since last time we were here and is looking much better. We washed a few of our clothes and organised our packs ready to start walking at last.

Still walking and waiting........

The training has been going well after a slow start to the year. The packing weights are comfortable and the new boots too. We have found accomodation for all our planned stages and the ferry is booked. The waiting time until we leave always seems slow and we could pack and repack to check that nothing essential is left out. We have collected some euros on a 'cash card' as the rate is good at the moment but will get more as we leave. The cash card is good as it has no link to our actual accounts. This time we have the new multi-currency cards so trust that they work as well as the old single currency type. So we wait patiently, keep walking..... and the time will pass........Then we will be following first of all the 'fish' sign for San Andrés and after that the 'shell' for the Camino Inglés.

Preparation and training

We are now well into the planning and training for later in the year. Our packs have been tweaked a few times to keep the load as light as possible without leaving out any essentials. The lists below are comfortable to pack and carry and we have been walking with that weight lately. Our new boots are being gradually broken in with our new walking socks. Distances walked are still in part dictated by the weather but we can walk hills locally by keeping to the roads. As the tracks dry out we will walk them and wear the new boots more.

Our stages are sorted out and we plan to walk from Ribadeo to Viveiro, then take the FEVE via Espasante to Ponte Mera to walk to San Andrés de Teixido. The guide recommends taking a taxi to Cedeira for accomodation, so we will do that and then bus to Ferrol to walk the full Camino Inglés. That gives us time to see places en route and to walk fairly short days.

We have our new credenciales starting in Ribadeo but will look for sellos as we make our way there; from home, the ferry port, Santander and Oviedo (Cámara Santa).

We do not intend to use the internet while walking so will keep our posts and photos until we return home, as we did previously. Meanwhile we have some time yet in which to continue with preparation and training as well as gathering more information about the route itself and places of interest.

The first Camino Inglés marker post in Ferrol.

Deciding the route

Our original plan was to walk the Camino del Mar (Ruta do Mar) through to Xubia and then join the Camino Inglés there. This year's planning has led us to decide to make our way to Ferrol and to start the Inglés from the harbour-side. We might even go to Covas - 9kms north-west of Ferrol - and start there, walking back into Ferrol itself. This could confuse some readers as we will also go to another Covas - 2kms from Viveiro - much earlier in the walk.

We expect to walk from Ribadeo to Viveiro and Covas, then take the FEVE to Ortegueira to avoid a long section with (for us) difficult terrain and little accomodation. From Ortegueira we will take the FEVE round to Ponte Mera and walk to San Andrés - again the decision is taken becasue of distance and accomodation. This should enable us to then go to Cedeira and take a bus to Ferrol. Timing, distance etc influences this as we need sufficient days to walk the Camino Inglés.

We should have about 18 walking days, plus stop overs in places of interest and time in Santiago itself. Meanwhile, with several months to go before departure, we need to keep walking and build up our distances while carrying our packs.

San Martin de Xubia where the pilgrimage route for San Andrés de Teixido joins the Camino Inglés

Packing list - 2

On a hot day Terry would be wearing:- s/s T-shirt; walking shirt; trunks; walking trousers; full set of socks; boots; hat.
So Terry's packing for 2015 is expected to be as follows:-

Rucksack - inc cover:- 1.670kgs
Poncho:- 0.340kgs
Waterproof trousers:- 0.350kgs
Walking shirt:- 0.240kgs
Tidy Shirt:- 0.125kgs
s/s T-shirt - (x1):- 0.135kgs
Walking trousers:- 0.300kgs
Pants (Trunks) 75g (x2):- 0.150kgs
Liner socks x2 0.050kgs
Socks 45g (x2); 80g (x1):- 0.170kgs
Crocs 300g (x2 pairs):- 0.600kgs
Sporks/charger-adaptor:- 0.100kgs
First Aid/medical:- 0.300kgs
Blue windproof fleece:- 0.400kgs
Longjohns:- 0.075kgs
L/s vest:- 0.075kgs
Towels 120g (x1) 180g (x1):- 0.300kgs
Daysac:- 0.068kgs
Camera:- 0.250kgs
Safety jacket:- 0.100kgs
Phone/charger/soap/torch:- 0.250kgs
Inhaler kit:- 0.220kgs
Boot kit inc Fungusol:- 0.150kgs
2 Water bottles (-water); extras:-

Total weight:- 6.783kgs

Full water bottles would add 2kgs to this total, but would only be needed some times. Most days half to three quarters full would be sufficient between stops.
Some of the apparent extras are carried for Valerie to help keep her pack smaller and lighter.
We want to be able to carry our packs and not have to use one of the bag transport systems. No sleeping bags (they weigh 75ogms each) helps to keep the load light but does mean that, this time, we will use all private accommodation where bedding is provided.

Packing list - 1

The first stage of practical preparation after deciding the route has to be the packing list (again) We are both keen to keep the weight we carry as low as possible, but there are some items we need to have with us and as usual a complete change of clothes, including cold weather gear.

Wearing (on a hot day):- Walking trousers, shirt, undies, socks, boots and hat.
So Valerie's list looks like this when the rucksack is fully packed for a hot day:-

Rucksack:- 1.067kgs
Poncho:- 0.340kgs
Waterproof trousers:- 0.155kgs
Walking shirt x1:- 0.170kgs
Blouse:- 0.130kgs
l/s vests 70g x2:- 0.140kgs
Walking trousers:- 0.335kgs
Bra x2:- 0.050kgs
Pants (Briefs) 35g x2; 20g x2:- 0.110kgs
Liner socks x4:- 0.100kgs
Walking socks 70g x1; 45g x2:- 0.160kgs
Longjohns/pyjamas 70gx2:- 0.140kgs
Dress/nightdress:- 0.180kgs
Scarf:- 0.025kgs
Gloves:- 0.015kgs
Vest x2:- 0.070kgs
Fleece windproof jacket:- 0.400kgs
Travel cardigan:- 0.165kgs
Towel:- 0.085kgs
W.bag/shampoo/soap/pegs/line:- 0.300kgs
Glasses case/torch/eye-mask/earplugs:- 0.100kgs
Daysac:- 0.068kgs
Safety vest:- 0.100kgs
E-coil:- 0.180kgs
Water bottles (-water); paper/paints; 'extras';

Total weight - 5.500kgs

Total with water 6.5kgs